The present invention relates to wiring systems for desks or the like. Wiring is often brought into a desk from beneath, is run through some sort of raceway underneath the desk or within the desk, and is then fed out through an access opening generally at the top of the side of the desk and from thence out onto the desk top. In this way, wiring for telephones, dictating machines and other office equipment does not have to hang exposed down the sides of the desk.
The problem of the access openings at the top of the sides of the desk being unsightly and sloppy was solved at least in many applications by a wiring access means disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,787,605 to Robert C. VanGessel and Dirk J. VanKuik, issued on Jan. 22, 1974 and assigned to Steelcase Inc. In that invention, an insert having a plurality of sides with different sized openings on each side could be reoriented within an opening at the top edge of the desk side panel so as to provide a different sized opening for different sized wires coming through the access opening. The system was particularly useful on wood desks where the old sliding door systems of metal desk is not useable.
One problem still remaining with that system is that the access opening into which the wiring insert is fitted is still quite small when it comes to feeding bulky wires through, particularly if they have large connectors on the end thereof as telephone and dictating machine wiring often do. This problem could obviously be corrected by making the wiring insert larger. Unfortunately, the insert itself begins to get unsightly in appearance when one pursues this solution. Yet another obvious solution is to structure the desk end panel so that it is removable. In this way, the wiring can first be located within the desk and set so that it will pass out onto the top of the desk, and then the end panel can be laid over the wiring with the access opening located to receive the wiring. The wiring insert is then placed in the access opening to further tighten the aperture through which the wiring passes.
While these solutions are helpful, they leave the problem unsolved when the desk has an end panel which can not be removed. Further, these solutions create another problem for the user in the field who wants to move his wiring from the left side of the desk to the right side of the desk or vice versa. He would have to change both end panels around in order to accomplish this goal. For most users, such a reconstruction of the desk constitutes major surgery.